But details wrapped in secrecy

Ricky Gervais is about to start work on a secret new Channel 4 project, his producer has revealed.

Charlie Hanson – who has produced Extras, Life’s Too Short, and Cemetery Junction – said Gervais will begin work on the show later this month,

However he refused to be drawn on details, telling the Cofilmic comedy film conference in Manchester: ‘It may well change yet.

But he confirmed: ‘Ricky will be in it and be one of the main people, with a couple of others.’

When asked at whether the show was the so-called ‘atheist sitcom’ Gervais had been planning with Dexter producer Clyde Phillips, Hanson said it wasn’t.

And he added they had made the show with Channel 4, because BBC Two – which is just about to start airing Life’s Too Short – would not want two Gervais shows on at the same time.

Though his biggest hits have been at the BBC, Gervais started his career on Channel 4’s 11 O’Clock Show – and the recent animated versions of his sitcom have also aired on the channel.

Back in July, Gervais was revealed to be working on a pilot episode of a comedy called Afterlife, about an atheist who dies and goes to heaven. He blogged at the time: ‘We finally started working on an idea this year and we really hit it off. I am so excited about this project.’

Published: 2 Nov 2011